Grisaia - The Path of Damnation
by Firedrakon
Summary: TAKES PLACE AFTER THE THREE VISUAL NOVELS! Yuuji, proposed by Heath Oslo to succeed him in his line of duty, takes up the job. Successively, Yuuji and Kazuki are dragged into a killer game alongside 30 of the most dangerous people on Earth. Just exactly what is Project X? Will Kazuki heal Yuuji and help him accept his sins or will he drown in them? Will they survive? Yuuji x Kazuki
1. Chapter X - Names and Origins

**NOTE: THIS IS NOT AN ACTUAL CHAPTER. THIS IS AN UNDER-PROGRESS DOCUMENT OUTLINING ALL THE CHARACTERS WHOM TAKE PART IN THE PROJECT X GAME. I WILL BE ADDING MORE CHARACTERS AS IT GOES, BUT, FOR NOW, THESE ARE THE CHARACTERS THAT ARE IN THE GAME.**

Kazami Yuuji [Japanese] - made to be the perfect assassin, his body performs at astounding levels, reaching the very peaks of human beings. After his body being put inside the regenerative technology machine studied by Julia Fuentes, his body has strengthened beyond those limits and he's capable of drawing out a larger portion of it without taking drugs and experiencing backlash. Specialty: assassination and sniping. Weakness: medium-range attacks, since he's only capable of wielding short-range knives and blades (1 meter maximum) and sniper rifles (from very long range, starting 100 meters to 1800 meters). He's capable of quick-grasping, however remains impulsive. While he can think about things in the short term effectively, his long term thinking is not powerful enough to direct operations by himself. His starting gear is a long-distance rifle with 5 bullets.

Kazami Kazuki [Japanese] - a genius born with an IQ of 180. At the current time, her IQ is at 250. She's capable of quick-minded thinking and adapting to situations near instantaneously. Her main strength is 'conjecture', a power with which she can predict events in the future with enough information on character profiles. She is very capable when in a team, however, she has a core weakness when working alone: she does not have any means to defend herself physically due to her weak body. The regenerative machine only helped her muscles restore to an acceptable level, and she is not strong enough to survive in a survival game without an ally. Her starting gear is a backpack filled with medical equipment, as well as a map of the area.

Alejandro Gutierrez [Spanish] - mass murderer. His total kill count is 743. Due to Kazami Yuuji's kill count being 764, he is after him. Essentially wants to be crowned the King of Murder, and demands people treat him with respect. When it comes down to it, his personality is extremely aggressive. He's unable to cooperate with anyone that wants to voice their opinion, and normally resorts to violence to make his 'comrades' shut up. Sewed the mouths of 49 people under the pretense of 'doing them a favor since their opinion was shit'. His reflexes are commendable, and he works for an organization of terrorism called ETA (short for Euskadi Ta Askatasuna) under the codename 'Bloodied Chain'. He wears a military tag with the number of victims he killed written on it and the name of the strongest he killed on the backside. He plans to make Yuuji his next strongest killed man. The regenerative machine made him unexpectedly energetic. His starting gear is a double-barrel shotgun with 6 cartridges and a throwing knife.

Enrico Biaggi [Italian] - a cowardly man. That's what people would tell you if you asked them about him, but it couldn't be further from the truth. Much like Kazuki, Enrico has a high IQ. However, other than 'prediction', his ability lies in 'manipulation'. While Kazuki can only predict the flow of events and give them a minor steer, Biaggi is a psychologist masters student who is capable of essentially stealing the freedom of choice from someone by understanding how they think and then narrowing their options down to one - the one that benefits him most. He has a weak personality as a facade, which explains why Alejandro Gutierrez takes him as his 'underling'. Enrico is waiting for the right time to manipulate him into falling into a trap. His staring gear is a pistol with 9 bullets and a transparent 10 meter metal cord.

Markos Anagnos [Greek] - a psychopath with a personality disorder. Almost as if directing a show, he utilizes two personalities; the first is a soft and peaceful one, where he begs people not to kill him and tries to get close to them and be nice, the other is a murderer who has extreme mastery over bare-handed murder. He was turned to a psychopath by torture, and has remained twisted for the rest of his life. He's been in and out of jail several times, but his disorder keeps making him get out and kill more people. In this game, his ultimate goal becoming his survival, his two personalities overlap and he becomes highly skilled in controlling the actions he takes, taking every opportunity and opening he can get. His starting equipment is 5 needles that can be used to kill someone by hitting a vital and a regular rope.

Vadim Mikhailov [Russian] - a member of the Russian mafia who has undergone training ever since he was small. His body is slender and he's agile, like Yuuji. His power can't match Yuuji's, but his trickiness is dangerous. His most incompatible opponent is a resistive and fat type, as he relies on hits to vitals in order to kill. After working for the Russian mafia for several years, he became known as the 'Reaper that comes with March', since he is mobilized greatly in spring's period. He has no interest for killing people as a means of satisfying his thirst - but he's ready to do so to survive. He tells himself he's a disgraceful bastard, but he needs to come back to his wife and daughter, the only lights in his life. He has a high degree of mastery with throwing knifes and martial arts. His starting equipment is 3 throwing knifes, binding rope and a ninja star which he doesn't know how to use.

Julia Fuentes [Brazilian] - a researcher who delved too deep into her research. She's got a commendable intellect, but it's not her greatest weapon, nor is it comparable to Kazuki's. Her research started as a result of hearing about Oslo's soldier plan; to create the perfect soldier. However, instead of thinking about 'breeding' them, she wanted to think about a more convenient way. She therefore turned to the creation of drugs to strengthen the body. Since she couldn't get her hands on a subject she could try these drugs out on, she decided to try them on herself. Due to the high quantity of drugs she self-administered, her mental state became unstable and she tends to see everyone but herself as an enemy. Her staring gear is a double-edged sword and a breastplate.

Gao Zi Shu [Chinese] - a hacker incredibly well versed in his area of correspondence. He's capable of killing thousands of people in a minute using his hacking skills by hacking into public transportation. He's passive-aggressive and can't deal with people easily. He feels like 'those bastards are judging him' (his own words). He's very physically weak and can't do anything on his own. His background is not clear, but it seems like he's been trying to steal money and transferring it to several random accounts to pin crimes on people he doesn't like. A petty man without anything but time on his hands. His starting equipment is a drone he doesn't know how to pilot that has a machine gun with 250 bullets loaded and 800 reserve.


	2. Prologue - His Last Day

Choices; the heart of all human life. Depending on the type of person you are, you may take an one option over another. It's a common thing for human beings, to make choices. Yet, sometimes, people find themselves unfamiliar with it.

The same couldn't be said about Kazami Yuuji. He was being eaten away by the regret he accumulated over his lifetime, but he was used to making choices. He'd choose his comrades over the mission, his life over his enemy's. He had chosen once again, and decided to infiltrate the mobile ship Tartarus to eliminate Oslo. It was the 'right' thing to do.

Despite knowing, Yuuji would never use the term 'right' for what he did. Too many corpses were left in his wake; he had chosen his revenge above the lives of the men he killed. He didn't appreciate this way of living, that's why life at Mihama Academy was so refreshing to him. To choose without taking on a huge burden - isn't that what a normal human being should be able to do?

His choices were the source of many people's hate. Zoe Graham, for one, was someone he'd made unhappy. When she had decided not to kill him, he already knew he would be laying down his life soon enough. He wanted to submit; he wanted to give up his life. Was it stupid? Yes, it most certainly was, but that didn't stop him from thinking that way.

In the middle of it all, Asako appeared in his dreams. She told him "Live for your sake", "Choose the path you want", but Yuuji couldn't understand it even if he came to terms with the fact Asako would say it. In fact, he felt extreme frustration deep down.

 _Live for_ _ **my**_ _sake? How am I supposed to do that when I've killed so many people?_ He knew far too well that he wanted punishment. After lecturing Amane so thoroughly on punishment, this is how he ended up... _How pathetic,_ he thought.

Yuuji decided to push that matter to the back of his mind and contemplate it later; right now, he had a man to kill. He had already killed several of Oslo's employees, the biological brother he'd never known and the man himself. Just when he thought it was truly over, a chamber in the corner of the decorated room opened. Through the wall of fog that clouded his eyes, Yuuji managed to barely discern shapes and colors. After a short delay, Yuuji realized who the man before him was.

Inside that room, a man who looked old enough to suck your life force away was sitting on a chair. The internal structure of the room was very complex, with several cables and devices lying around, but Yuuji's sights did not scan over anything but the man himself.

"...!" The ground under his feet disappeared, making him feel almost as if he were in free fall. He lost control over his conscious actions and he felt his head make way for his instincts. At some point, the man started speaking, but all Yuuji could hear was the sound of his own thoughts; "Kill. Die. Die. Kill".

Yuuji began saving up his strength. The wounds he had suffered were grave, especially the one to the stomach. He had to consciously think about breathing to keep himself alive. If he went in hyperventilation, he would definitely die.

"I want you to become the next Heath Oslo." The moment those words reached Kazami Yuuji's ears, his mind went into utter disorder once again.

"... Are you insane?" Despite sounding somewhat half-hearted, Yuuji conveyed his intention; he would never become Heath Oslo. He would never become a man who'd terrify, poison and kill so many people.

"Relax, my friend. It's not as if I'm asking you to save the world. You'd simply watch over it, and ensure its stability. A simple enough task, really. With you and your sister at the helm, it won't be difficult to maintain the 'peace' we've created..." The man spoke eloquently, yet his hoarse voice clearly conveyed the fact he was far past his prime. 160 years is far too long; no human being should live that long.

At the mention of his sister, Yuuji faltered. "... My sister?" Were he his usual self, he wouldn't hesitate to slash at Oslo - but he didn't muster enough strength yet. For that reason, he'd have to lean on the katana Asako left behind for a short while longer.

"That's right... She was the real reason I attempted to steal the Thanatos System, you know? She will be the brains, and you will be the brawn. If I'm not entirely mistaken, your sister has already hypothesized you might have this conversation with me, and she's probably predicted how you will respond to my offer as well. Everything is in your hands now; what is your choice?" The blonde man, wearing the signature red suit, could barely move anything but his fingers. Yuuji knew he would be an easy kill, and he had just mustered enough strength to do so. His rage was about to reach its apex, so he wanted to release it as soon as possible.

\- A thought stopped him in his tracks.

 _Wait... what if this is the road?_ Yuuji knew something for certain: if he lived in a carefree way by his own choice, he would most definitely find guilt behind every corner. He couldn't escape from what he had done - not even the room he filled with his thoughts knew that better than he did. At the mention of saving the world, Yuuji felt insecure. He wanted to find a way he could grant himself hell on Earth; a way he could finally feel like he got the punishment for his actions. Sure, he knew what it meant to become Heath Oslo... but he looked at it from a different angle. With the type of resources he could control, Yuuji could save the lives of many people. Unlike Oslo, he'd never train children to be soldiers; he would only hold war at bay and protect the peace.

Paradise - Yuuji knew that his classmates were going to recreate Mihama Academy. However, the idea of salvation sounded far too light on him; the quantity of people he'd killed was far too many.

 _\- if a bastard like me is allowed to have salvation, what type of rotten world is this?_

The moment that thought made its way through his mind he made his choice. He would do it; he would become 'Heath Oslo', but he would do it his way. A number of plans started assembling inside his head, and before he knew it, he had his answer lying in the palm of his hand.

 _Since I can't be allowed to become happy - then I must do everything I possibly can to make more people happy!_ He knew Asako would never acknowledge that type of childish thinking, but he didn't know how to live any other way. The only woman he had ever loved was Asako, and since he couldn't be of any help to her, he knew he was a failure. He didn't want to go to heaven; in fact, he had a burning desire for hell. He knew he would die sooner or later, but felt like he had to make his life the reflection of misery.

The people that he'd keep safe would never know they were saved, but he was fine with it. It didn't matter anyways; he didn't want any gratitude. At that moment, Yuuji finally gave an answer to himself.

"I will become Heath Oslo."

\- because I **can't** be allowed to become happy.


	3. Chapter 1 - Suffer for Today

Outside of Tartarus Isle, the wind blew at 30 knots, showing no clear signs of quieting up anytime soon. While well-known for its mobility, its movements do not help the guards hold their posts. At times even the men that lived on Tartarus Isle for half a decade start feeling seasick. This time, the men in charge for the surveillance of the ship had lost their will to stay on duty and sheltered themselves inside the ship's corridors. They occupied their time with idle chatter, clearly steering off any topic possessing relevance. Normally, the men in the corridors would discuss their latest raids or their past kills, as they were all mercenaries - but now, that type of conduct was forbidden.

It happened two months ago, when the new Oslo had taken charge.

"My name is Kazami Yuuji - sorry, I meant my name _was_ Kazami Yuuji. As of today, my name is Heath Oslo, the new head of the Oslo corporation. I've gathered you here to make an announcement." While the introduction the new Oslo made didn't particularly draw any attention, his next words definitely did.

" **Today onwards, the focus of the Oslo Corporation changes. I think you've all come here for money, after all, you are mercenaries.** " Following that statement that made everyone go silent, the man who called himself the new head of the corporation spoke up once more, " **I wish to create a world without war. Despite the way the Oslo Corporation approached its task until now, that task can truly become a powerful 'mission' if we change our ways!"**

The speech was curt and to the point, but it felt like he'd said so much more than he did. His tone of voice conveyed a great deal of passion. While it resonated with some, with others it struck a nerve. They say the more you take lives, the more you gain the aptitude to do so. Maybe they were contrary to Yuuji's lofty ideal, or they didn't like the fact they couldn't kill anymore - but a great deal of people sneered at the new Heath Oslo, standing atop of a podium.

Invisible electricity sparked in the air. The words left unsaid were probably the most meaningful.

 _We won't do as you say._ They were technically working for him, but mercenaries don't have any type of true link to their boss. That's how it works in the Oslo Corporation.

If one were to look carefully, he'd manage to divide the people lined up in several rows in two categories: those who wanted to stay the same and those who wanted to change.

Before anything else could be discussed, 'Heath Oslo' raised his voice again.

"Every single one of you here today has the liberty to walk away, but if you stay, you become part of the family. Leave bloodlust behind you and become a comrade! Today, we're not killers anymore; today, we're **heroes!** " At the completion of the short speech, several cheers erupted. The people who cheered felt that Yuuji had conveyed much more than just words to them.

Three minutes later, there were no traces of anyone who wasn't moved by Yuuji's speech. The men who disagreed with him had left Tartarus Isle by using the lifeboats located at the sides of the isle.

Two months; while that sounds like a long period of time, the way things can change in just sixty days is surprising. The research for the creation of the perfect assassin was abandoned, and several researchers lost their jobs. Some of them decided to run for managerial positions, but there was little work to be done. All in all, nearly three thousand people lost their jobs. Thankfully, Yuuji and Kazuki found a 'job' for them. Most of them turned into undercover agents. Kazakistan, Egypt, America, Russia - two out of the three thousand who lost their jobs were relocated. You may think that it would cause unhappiness, but it was a welcomed change for most. Kazuki knew that the job they took on was not a pleasant one - and having a change of pace helped them regain their motivation.

There were six occasions in which Yuuji was 'forced' to take action to maintain peace. In most of these cases, nothing memorable took place - other than one time.

Kazhastan had started a rebellion and attempted to send a kamikaze to Japan to cause damage to it. But before it the event took place, the revolution was suppressed with the least casualties possible. A few days later, a video broadcast of Kazami Yuuji was transmitted to Kazhastan (subtitled accordingly).

"I understand the pain that Kazhastan has felt, and I do not ask for it to dismiss it instantly. In fact, I think it's correct for anger to appear. What happened in Japan is unforgivable - but it wasn't Japan's fault. It was **my** fault." In a moment, Yuuji had gained the attention of all the men and women watching the broadcast. They knew the face of that man from somewhere, didn't they...?

"My alias is Heath Oslo - and my name is Kazami Yuuji. I was the one who launched the offensive on the Consulate General of the Republic of Kazhastan. You may have noticed only two names were made official - that is due to the fact I was the only culprit." At this point, people started balling their fists and forcing their fingernails to bite into their hands. Before they could start discussing amongst themselves, the man sitting on a leather armchair spoke once more.

"That said - I apologize." Before the camera, the man stood up and bowed as deeply as he could, hitting his head on the desk before him with a loud thunk. The camera angle wouldn't allow the people to see what Yuuji was doing, but he was clearly pushing through the desk with his head. Eventually, a loud *thunk!* announced the fracture of the wood. Yuuji's back arched further and his head went out of the camera shot. The people watching the broadcasted were in awe - for what possible reason was this man doing such a thing when he had killed their countrymen?

After a bow that lasted longer than a minute, Yuuji lifted his head. The depth of the sadness that was present in his eyes was hard to discern - mainly because it was so deep, it felt unreal. Just with one look, Yuuji had conveyed the fact he was incredibly sorry. "I have already sent a financial amend to those who have been damaged. I'm aware this cannot fix things; I will not ask for forgiveness. All I want to do is to apologize, from the bottom of my heart, for my actions. I'm truly sorry." Yuuji's face was already in a deplorable state by then. The splinters that split from the desk had bitten into his skin, causing it to bleed profusely. His cheeks and forehead were swelling, it was clear that the impact would leave him with bruises for at least a month. One of the splinters had buried itself uncomfortably close to his eye, but his eyes showed clear signs of repentance.

At that sight, the people simply stared. They kept staring, and eventually, something happened; Yuuji bowed once again. But instead of doing it normally, he held his right hand up with and made a hand gesture. Each minute, the gesture changed; it was a demonstration he was truly there, still bowing. The television networks had long noticed that something was amiss, but they didn't have the ability to fix it. Thanatos, namely Kazami Kazuki, was making sure they could not regain control by hacking their antennae and transmitting the signal sent to it by the Tartarus.

After a sixty minutes and sixty hand gestures, the television managers cut the power on the feed. Kazuki deemed herself satisfied and stopped interference.

And while Kazhastan hasn't forgiven Kazami Yuuji, they made him into a celebrity.

'The Apologetic Man'

That was the nickname he was given by them. Many were skeptical of his one-hour long bow, but no matter how hard the hackers looked for evidence, they couldn't prove the video was fake.

That was why the men who hadn't left Tartarus Isle admired Yuuji. He took responsibility for something huge that wasn't even his own work to relieve the burden on the country's internal affairs. The spirit of self-sacrifice he showed made some of them worry for their jobs, but still found it commendable. He had shown his worth; his rules were worth following.

While the wind was blowing at 30 knots, Yuuji was shut inside the study room he'd long grown accustomed to. Lately, he was feeling tired for no reason, so he decided to see for how long he could work without stopping. He had been awake for almost 24 hours. He made his way through several documents, signed some contracts and wrote several letters. No matter the task he was up to, one would see a strange mix of determination and emptiness in his eyes. Just like black and white, the two emotions clashed and fought over the dominance, but it didn't seem like either would win any time soon.

Every time he worked his way through a letter, his tears welled up. It happened - and even Yuuji himself couldn't tell why. Did he hate the fact he was hurting people? Did he hate himself for not feeling the same pain that they felt? He didn't know at all.

Once he'd made his way through the last document he could possibly work on, a loud noise echoed through Yuuji's room. Kazuki had slammed the door opened, and proceeded to make her way through the entrance. Her cheeks were red; her eyes showed distress. She was breathing heavily from rushing out of the Thanatos System into the room.

Her lips moved, and five words made their way to Yuuji's ears.

That was the beginning of something much more dangerous than anyone could've ever expected.


	4. Chapter 2 - Remembrance and Action

What makes a bond 'strong'? Kazuki had asked herself that question several times over the last two months. Was it intimacy? Comfort? Agreement? Whatever it was, it seemed like she wouldn't get her answer any time soon.

Kazuki had a person she truly cared about by her side, but he kept suffering. She wanted to reach his heart, but no matter what she tried, it seemed like nothing would work. She had done idiotic things, like dress in semi-transparent clothes, in order to take Yuuji's attention away from work...

"Haah." Kazuki sighed, recalling what had become of Yuuji.

Initially, he tackled the work without a shred of hesitation. However, after the first two days, he began to falter - almost as if he had just realized what he was doing. Yuuji knew he would eventually start breaking down; he had taken on the job of the man who killed the only person he'd ever loved, after all. After two weeks, Yuuji seemed to have become a hollow husk, living only to work.

No matter how hard Kazuki tried to cheer him up, he would simply keep working on the letters. She had started doing things as ridiculous as walking around near-naked in order to catch his attention, but it only got her an encouragement to cease doing so. She knew Yuuji's pain was great, but she was starting to feel unsettled by the change Yuuji was experiencing. While she was inside the Thanatos System, she took great care to look over his personal life with Kusakabe Asako - and she predicted that there was a 70% chance Yuuji would break down within the first three months of work. She had planned for it from day one, but it was painful to see him like that all the same.

Kazuki wanted to take his burden. She didn't care about how unhappy she may become; she wanted to do something for the only person in the world she truly cared about. She may be the girl who operated the SIGINT system Thanatos, but she still had 'emotions'. She was a human, after all.

Over the course of the last two months, she had gotten used to everyday life as a member of the Oslo Corporation. She was given a personal chamber, that is, a room, in which she often holed herself up in. She planned to read novels for amusement, but she always ended up staring into the distance thinking.

 _What can I do for him? How can I reach him?_ Kazuki was so frustrated she threw the book she was reading at the television, causing it to fall over and break in a million pieces. She was the Thanatos System - so why is it that she couldn't do something as easy as helping her own brother?!

The first time Yuuji broke down he was checking over the personnel list in his room. No one other than Kazuki was allowed to freely walk into the room, so he didn't restrain himself, knowing there would be no backlash. When Kazuki walked into the room, she found Yuuji spilling tears over the paper of the personnel. Yuuji always was a frail person, deep down, but he never allowed himself to show it to anyone.

His thoughts back then were on the lines of, _I am doing the same job as the person who killed Asako. I'm disgusting... revolting... repulsive..._ He truly hated his weakness, his flaw of being overly sensitive - but he didn't know how to live any other way.

Kazuki felt hurt, frustrated, angry - she wanted to do something for him, but she didn't know what. _The great Thanatos System, that which knows all, is unable to do anything?_ It was no exaggeration to call that the most reoccurring thought she had. Her anger had reached absurd levels - she even ended up hurting herself from punching things at random.

Her character had started to break because of the developments. As she looked down at her bloodied hands, she thought, _so this is what it feels like to be powerless huh?_

In the end, she arrived at an answer.

 _Love. So much love the world won't matter anymore._

She knew extremely well they were blood-related siblings; she also knew that Yuuji had never taken any girl seriously before. He had never felt anyone to be a 'partner' to him. Asako was only a parent in the end, and as much as Yuuji loved her, he couldn't bring it any further than that. Hence, Kazuki had to show him there was greater love.

That was when Kazuki got herself together. She stopped lashing out and decided to use her all to heal her broken brother. For the first time in months, she took of the arm she used to operate the Thanatos System. Under it, she found that her skin was unsurprisingly sensible - but she decided to follow her plan. She made her way towards Yuuji's room, entered it and embraced him tightly.

"Your hand..." Yuuji noticed the change.

"Oh, this? It's not fake - I used to wear the metal arm over it in order to operate the System from a certain range." Kazuki tightened her grip on Yuuji's back, pulling her face into his chest.

"... Why?"

"Just leave it. It's going to be alright."

Kazuki started embracing Yuuji like that at random. Initially, it caused Yuuji's breakdowns to increase in frequency. Kazuki feared it be her fault, so she almost ceased in doing so - but Yuuji never rejected her. At some point, his expression when he was embraced started softening. He started hugging her back, snuggling inside her warmth. Every time that happened, it felt as if they'd drifted into a different world, one where no sadness and pain existed, and Kazuki felt that it started happening.

 _My brother is still there._ She knew he was; she just had to insist enough and he'd be back to himself in no time. She knew he regretted the fact the girls from Mihama Academy had built the 'paradise' on the island he owed but he couldn't go to visit. She knew he blamed himself for every little shortcoming that he had.

Maybe that is why she started falling for him. He longed for complete purity, even he was so frail. He was far too bright - almost like a supernova. If you looked too long, your eyes may burn to ashes, but it was far too beautiful to look away.

It was the 11th of October, 2013, when Kazuki caught wind of something that frightened her to say the least. She knew Yuuji wouldn't like hearing about it, but if she managed it on her own she was sure he would never forgive her. Torn between telling or not telling, she decided to choose the option her brother would want her to choose.

She got out of the Tartarus core and quickly dressed herself up. The room she was in was quite narrow, but beyond the glass that separated her from the rest of the System, a lot of space was taken up by the physical suborganic computer.

"... How dull." The clothes she'd prepared today were purposefully non-transparent; she didn't want her brother to complain anymore, but she found them truly too much of burden on her body, since her body was still weak. Moving around a weight all the time felt tiring, so she only did so for the sake of her brother. Once she finished dressing, she slammed the door of the Thanatos room open and shut it behind her.

The sound of the automatic lock closing could hardly be heard over the sound of her footsteps. Once she reached her destination, namely Yuuji's office, she took a deep breath and made her way through its door. She found Yuuji working on some documents she told him to save for tomorrow - he clearly hadn't listened, but that was better than waking him up right now. There was no time to waste.

Her words rang through the room.

"Yuuji, we have a problem." Her abrupt declaration instantly drew Yuuji's attention. Her complexion looked bad; she probably had rushed a great deal in order to reach the room. "A part of the Oslo Corporation that didn't agree with your philosophy has taken control over a number of locations and weapons and is planning to destroy the world."

They had managed to fool the Thanatos system for so long, and didn't have much information. They only knew one thing - the peace they had struggled to maintain was now being trampled. Yuuji exhaled, steeled his determination and stood up from the chair.

"It seems like we have business to get to."


	5. Chapter 3 - It Begins

Rebellions; normally, they are started by people who are unhappy with the situation and expect more from the world. However, in this case, any of that common sense was missing. Was it the recent change of leadership? The sudden shift in the organization's aim? Kazuki couldn't answer that question herself, since she had calculated all the possible scenarios, and this was not one of them. If a rebellion broke out, it would've broken out before the end of the first month.

The people in charge of the rebellion had managed not evade the Thanatos's web of information. This was already an alarm bell, as that meant the rebellion was organized by someone who could negate Yuuji's and Kazuki's greatest strength.

"Damn... that is not good news." Yuuji felt cold sweat make its down his spine; he may have taken charge of the Oslo Corporation, but it was far beyond him to control everything. He'd handled the burden and the tasks he had to complete because Kazuki had lent her help.

Kazuki's white one-piece dress flapped like a flag behind her as she ran. Yuuji didn't feel comfortable running with a suit on, but he had to make do. He was heading for Ieyase Doppo, the man who was in charge for the armed forces belonging to the Oslo Corporation.

After running with Kazuk for some time, Yuuji noticed Kazuki started falling behind. He reached out his hand to her, but she never grabbed it. Instead, Kazuki collapsed on the floor.

"Yuuji... run... it's anesthetic gas..." A whisper-like voice made its way to Yuuji. Hearing Kazuki's words, he felt his anger explode.

 _What the fuck? I try to help people and **this** is what happens?_ He hated himself more than everything, but he couldn't deny that he hated the world just as much. The way it worked wasn't the way it should work; the world was full of disgusting shit. Instead of listening to Kazuki, Yuuji reached out to her and lifted her. She had already fallen asleep - though it would be more accurate to say 'put to sleep'. Yuuji held on to his breath and ran through the empty hallways.

 _... Huh?_ Thinking about it, weren't there supposed to be guards around here? Just what was happening?

Before he could find the answer to that question, he ran out of breath. He attempted to breathe as little as possible, but his arms started feeling weak and his legs started feeling like chunks of metal. Feeling himself falling over, Yuuji shielded Kazuki from the fall.

A group of men dressed in black suits with gas masks made their way to Yuuji, who was about to completely black out.

"Bastards..." Yuuji knew it was no use, but he still cursed, knowing what was about to unravel may result in his death.

He may hate his life... and he may not want to live anymore... but as long as he managed to protect others, it was something that he decided to take on. Slowly, his heart had started piecing itself back together thanks to Kazuki and the warmth she passed to him, so maybe he could've become relatively happy. He knew he shouldn't, that he didn't deserve it, but as long as he took the most painful option, wasn't it fine to find a small salvation...?

Those feelings were being crushed by the second by the men around him. One of them reached out to touch him, but Yuuji mustered enough strength to slap his hand away. He was barely conscious, but he had to do something. He had to protect Kazuki, the only person he could still protect.

His strength faded. His vision fogged. Before long, Yuuji couldn't feel the inferno of emotions that had built up inside him anymore. The world went dark, and he fell asleep.

* * *

Waking up was not a pleasant experience for Kazuki. She opened her eyes and panicked, finding her wrists bound by metallic chains. The information she quickly gathers is that she's completely in the dark, and while she can move her head around, the rest of her body is bound by something. Both her wrists and her ankles are bound by metallic chains, and she realizes she has to be lying down on something. From the texture, it's likely that the material is a plastic polymer - it's too soft to be metal or wood, but too hard to be a mattress.

 _Think. Where could I be, and what is happening?_ Having overcome her immediate panic, she returns to rationality. Her biggest strength being her deduction, she had to put it to full use. She didn't even spare a moment to complain about the fact she didn't understand her situation; something like this had already happened when she was involved in the bus crash. There are things inside her area of influence and things that aren't; this experience is the latter.

Time passes, yet the only answer she can find is ridiculously idiotic; something mentioned in a web page 5 years ago, hidden at the very bottom of the deep web. She wouldn't elaborate that hypothesis if it wasn't for the fact there simply weren't any other options.

 _Thinking about it, isn't it idiotic to announce something like that openly? Why would they do - no way..._ To Kazuki's surprise, all the pieces started falling into place. The evasive movements around Thanatos, the fake information leaked to her under the pretense of a rebellion... they are all part of something much, much greater. Kazuki's worst fears turned into an inconfutabile truth before her very eyes.

'They' called it **Project X**. In an attempt to draw the attention of sponsors, a group of terrorists revealed their ambition to several people on the web; to host a game featuring the most dangerous human beings on the planet. It was nothing more than a rumor in reality; there was simply no way that someone could gather the most dangerous. That's what she thought when she first encountered the declaration, but her thoughts were starting to change. Effectively, no one ever understood if they got a sponsor. And while she couldn't be sure, there was the possibility someone with a strong financial background had supported their group in order to make this project come to its completion.

As Kazuki saw it, the likelihood of the connection was high. She wasn't hooked up with the Thanatos System, so she really wasn't 'omnipotent', but a voice at the back of her head kept whispering to her 'that is the case'. She wasn't used to feeling distressed, but this time it was different. This time, the single most important existence to her was in danger.

Before long, she noticed she was shut inside a space resembling the Thanatos System's connection chamber. While the two didn't have a connection, they were so similar Kazuki thought she was breathing the same air she had when she 'plugged' and 'unplugged' herself. However, unlike the chamber that Kazuki utilized, this chamber gave off an eerie feeling.

After examining the situation with as much information as she had, Kazuki's thoughts drifted to Yuuji. She felt sure he wasn't next to her, since her eyes were getting used to the dark and it didn't seem like anyone else was around. And as Kazuki started recalling the moment she was put to sleep, a white window appeared before her eyes, blinding her.

"..." While she didn't say anything, she had to keep her eyes shut to get used to the change. After some time, she opened them slightly. On the digital screen before her, the video of two men, one of which was holding a microphone, appeared before her. Both dressed in dark suits, they looked at Kazuki expectantly.

"Are you awaaaaake?" One of the two spoke into the microphone - in **English**. It was the internation language - not the Japanese she had grown used to. She understood things were about to go downhill.

"Hopefully you have gotten used to the brightness of the screen! You are now able to witness my beauty!" One of the men struck a pose, while the other simply looked at him, trying to figure out what part of this was in the script. Putting an end to his farce, the other man (who was slightly taller) took the liberty to snatch the microphone out of his colleague's hand. Articulating his sentences like a machine, the mysterious man opened up his speech.

"I apologize for the delay - given your situation, you are most likely wondering where in the world you may be, and why you are here. Right now, you are in a regenerative capsule. This is a technology that has been recently developed. If your muscles or tissues were damaged, you are now technically healthy. Other than that - you are inside a massive boxing ring." Despite the clarity of his pronunciation, the clarity of his words was amiss. "Have any of you watched 'The Hunger Games?' Well, for your information, that's exactly the type of situation you're in!" Just a Kazuki feared it; this was Project X.

"Let me just give you a couple of tips. First; you are inside an artificially made environment. Here, trees don't grow food you can eat. Once you step outside of the capsule, don't go eating the stuff lying around unless you want to turn into a corpse. Second; this game only has one rule, that rule being: kill. You can team up all you want, but you're going to stab or get stabbed sooner or later; the game can only end once one of you remains. Third; the game has no time limit. For provisions, you'll find them (if you're lucky) inside the forest shelters, structures built from metal where food is provided on a daily basis." It sounded exactly like as if they were put inside a cage to fight for someone else's amusement; Kazuki felt indignation towards the men speaking from a safe place rise from her stomach.

"We do not insure any of your safety, in fact, why would we put the 20 most dangerous people in an arena? Just to play _Go!?_ " Kazuki had just realized what her brother and she had gotten into. She was ranked amongst the top 20, but she couldn't make sense of it for her brother. Why would he be selected after becoming so frail? ... Actually, was he selected?

She understood that was a stupid question. If what the man said about the 'regenerative capsule' was true, Kazuki knew her brother would likely be the strongest human on the planet. If that was the case, where was he?

"You can figure out what to do yourselves from here; it's a survival game, not some kid's playground! Also, for any of those who will simply hide; there are bombs located on the wristwatch you are now wearing. After hiding for 24 hours, the bombs will automatically activate, killing you and anyone else in the range of 10 meters." Kazuki glanced down at her left wrist. She was no longer wearing the Thanatos arm; her skin was exposed to the air and a black screen was strapped to her wrist.

Without warning, the darkness enveloping Kazuki disappeared; the hatch of the cockpit-like space opened. It didn't take long for Kazuki to realize she was in what seemed to be an actual jungle. Looking around herself, Kazuki couldn't see anything but tall grass and trees; her white hair definitely stood out in a place filled with nothing but green.

The temperature was around 30 degrees, but she didn't feel uncomfortable for some reason. She had likely grown used to in the in the time she was sleeping. Above her head, she could barely catch a glimpse of the sky through the clouds.

"Have fun and show us a good show." And so, the desperate fight for survival started.


	6. Chapter 4 - Objectives and Plans

_**IMPORTANT NOTICE - THIS CHAPTER IS LINKED TO A MAP I DREW. YOU CAN FIND IT AT imgur,com**_ ** _/SCsrlB9_**

 _In order for the link to work, remove the comma (_ **,** _) after imgur and add a dot in its place(_ **.** _)_

* * *

Why do people kill?

That question sounds so simple to answer, yet if you were to look for a precise reason you'd never reach a conclusion. Each person has their motive, their 'reason'. Some people kill for money, while others kill for revenge, and others kill just because it sends a discharge of adrenaline running through their bodies.

Yuuji did not even have time to fully process the words of the man dressed in a suit. He was extremely uncomfortable in the position he was in previously. He barely listened to the explanation of the survival game, as his ability to think clearly was fogged by the sense of similarity between that space and the room he had spent his sleepless nights in. Once the space opened up and he was let out, he regretted not listening to the words of the two announcers. He stepped onto the ground and tried recalling anything useful; there was one thing he _knew._

 _If I hesitate - I'm dead..._ Well, that's the thought he would normally encounter. However, for some reason, a thought completely unrelated came to mind.

 _Where is Kazuki? Is she ok? Is she also in this killing game? What am I supposed to do? In which direction do I run? How am I going to..._ Yuuji didn't even ask himself for the reason this was happening.

He didn't notice it but, over the last month, Kazuki had grown inside him just like how Asako had. After all, a blood relation is strong, and he started feeling that strength once more after a long time. She had become a source of light - someone he could no longer do without. While all this information evaded him, he knew something.

"I have to save Kazuki." He knew the girl would not wait around to be saved, but he also knew unless Kazuki was by his side, she couldn't use her ability to the fullest. She needed a tool she could use to execute her plans - he wanted to be that tool. Having regained enough clear-mindedness, Yuuji searched the area. Currently, he was in a grassy field, and he could see trees in the distance. At his feet - a rifle and a set of bullets.

"... So is this what this is?" Yuuji put forth the question knowing no one would answer it. He took the rifle, loaded a round, shoved the bullets inside his pockets and strapped it to his back. Only then did he notice the clothes he was wearing. It wasn't the suit he had worn before fainting, instead, it was a black bodysuit. The black bodysuit stuck uncomfortably close to his skin, but he decided to ignore that matter... until he noticed the suit had a strange electronic device attached to it.

 _Is this a map of some kind?_ Yuuji didn't know if it was supposed to be a map, but that's what it resembled. Elevation marks were spread over the display, and an orange dot was positioned at the very center of the screen.

Yuuji, pushed by his own curiosity, decided to tap on the orange dot. When he did so, a small window containing some of his information showed up; blood type, height, weight, and other useless pieces of information. Below them, he saw two symbols. One of them showed a skull, while the other showed a flag. Yuuji wanted to understand what these two signified and if they could help him find Kazuki, but before he could, the terminal bound to his wrist vibrated. When he moved his line of sight a few centimeters over, his eyes instantaneously widened.

Without the need to think, Yuuji broke into a run.

* * *

Kazuki had quickly grasped the basics of the terminal; it was meant to be a map that displayed 'enemies' and recorded them once you saw them to chase them down. Additionally, one could decide to take a couple of actions that had an impact on the match.

The first was coordinate and information communication, symbolized by a flag. This would let all the people in the match know where and who you were.

The second was quite literally 'self-elimination'. While the people fighting would probably not make such a choice, it may become the case later on.

Kazuki had tried removing the suit, but before that, she had used the coordinate communication.

"I need to meet up with Yuuji - quickly." She **knew** she was being irrational. In fact, she knew it would be much, much safer to simply wait around for the first day and see what happens... but she felt worried. They hadn't been apart for longer than an hour over the last month.

Out of character, she felt her face flush, but her expression soon shifted to that of worry. By taking the action she did, she forced Yuuji to action. Deciding she should find a tall tree to climb it and wait for him get there, Kazuki strapped the backpack she found nearby to her back and walked off into the forest.

That said, things don't play out the way would want them to.

While Yuuji was running at his maximum speed in Kazuki's direction - who was as far as 20 kilometers from him - the other people who were dragged into the arena started realizing the nature of the event. Kazuki had been the one to break them out of their confusion - hence, a large quantity of people started rushing towards her. Out of six people that were close to Yuuji and Kazuki, four started moving. The other two simply hid and waited, possibly trying to gain an advantage on others.

And as Kazuki was close to reaching the top of a tree branch, she felt the screen on her terminal vibrate. When she looked, she realized what had happened.

 _... I should've known he'd do that._ Yuuji had transmitted his coordinates. It was very obvious to do, but Kazuki was hoping he wouldn't do it, since she didn't want her mistake to become a reason for Yuuji to get targeted. She felt indescrivibile frustration, but she bottled it up. Yuuji's coordinates weren't only meant to attract people away from Kazuki, they were also meant to be a 'don't move, I'm coming right now' message. Keeping her breathing regular, trying to blend in with the leaves of the tree, Kazuki watched the blue dot that symbolized Yuuji move on her screen.

"... You're so hopeless." Despite the sentence Kazuki whispered to herself, her face betrayed her, as it was showing a hint of happiness. And as the sound of cicadas surrounded Kazuki, the soundless noise of her heart melting felt sweet, far too sweet to be real.

* * *

When he woke up inside a closed space, Alejandro Gutierrez thought he had died. Wouldn't be unlikely, considering his hobby was dealing with lives first-hand. He tried recalling the last thing that happened to him, however, he failed to do so. He didn't know if he was playing pool with the few people he'd dare call 'friends' or if he was throwing up after drinking too much.

When the light made its way to him, he felt his head ache. He was confused by the screen with the two men talking, but when they stopped, his mouth curled into a wicked smile.

"Hehe... it's time to play..." He giggled as he exited the narrow dark space that he'd been locked inside. When he looked around, his bloodthirst took a nosedive; he was standing before a beach. The water collided with the sand, emitting a low background noise that most people would find soothing, but surely not Alejandro.

Alejandro was, and still is, a mass murderer. He is part of the ETA, a terrorist group, and is well-known as the most brutal killer you may find. His total kill count is 743.

You wouldn't be able to understand Alejandro. After all, if you haven't lived their life, you'd never guess what the person in front of you can feel. This applies to Alejandro particularly well; he had lived a life that not many would consider 'abnormal', but he had become tremendously violent. The only thing you may understand is that he has a complex that pushes him to want being the 'best' at something.

And due to Kazami Yuuji's kill count being 764, he was after him. He was the only person who was ever capable of beating his score. No matter how many people he had killed, no matter how many terrorist attacks he participated in, he had never overcome Yuuji; he was stuck at the number two seat from the whole time he tried to be the best.

That explains why when he felt his wrist vibrate and saw the letters 'Kazami Kazuki', he felt a shiver of excitement.

 _At long last... I will get to meet him!_ Alejandro didn't care for that stupid game, he didn't care for anything that may involve others controlling him. He had never cared about what others thought anyways. He didn't know how it may work, but he would take Kazami Kazuki, Yuuji's sister, and find him. Nothing else mattered; nothing else was relevant.

Of course, Alejandro couldn't explain why Kazuki would be alive, but he knew it had to be her; she was the only Kazami Kazuki who could be rated at the top 20 dangerous on Earth. He reached down at his feet, took the backpack that contained a double-barrel shotgun, 6 cartridges and a throwing knife and started running towards the water, knowing he'd have to swim in order to reach the rest of the land. He was well physically trained, so he hand no problem reaching the land that was only a kilometer away.

When he stepped onto the beach, his clothes drenched in water, he glanced over to the terminal built into the suit and saw a second blue dot. His finger rushed forward and pressed on the blue dot in question.

'Kazami Yuuji'

A smile anyone would describe as disgusting made its way up his face. Nothing could've ever excited him as the thought of killing Kazami Yuuji, ET-01, the perfect human weapon.

* * *

When you get good at manipulating people, you tend to make your way up the ladder. After all, isn't it the easiest thing to use your words to control someone? Say something one day, say something the next. Thanks to these interventions, you can essentially become a winner in life.

Enrico Biaggi would indubitably agree to that sentence if you told them to him. In the duration of his lifetime, he had used his special talent for the control of people to indirectly commit several murders. Is he dangerous? If you asked any of his 'friends' that question, all you'd get is a reply mixed with spit and laughs. _Him? Harmful? HAHAHA!_

That always was their shortcoming. Enrico was never caught for committing a crime, as he always hid himself behind several fake names and masks. Most of the people he put up to kill someone even forgot their own name, and became patients at psychology clinics for the rest of their lives.

But the man didn't feel a thing. Instead, when he saw someone squirm and dance in his palm, he only thought about how he'd use him for his own goals. His own life was far more precious than anything else, and he felt entitled to 'kill' anyone that may get in his way; in the way of his 'king of the world' plan.

Of course, Enrico was no perfect being. He was capable of controlling people very well, but only once he had a good grasp on their character. Information was everything to him; he needed it more than he needed air.

"Oooh... Oooohh" And conveniently, it was just about to fall into his hands. He knew Kazami Kazuki, the genius. After Yuuji became the leader of the Oslo Corporation, several rumors regarding Kazuki had started going around. Most of them directed at Kazuki being related to the Thanatos System, the ultimate information-extracting system. Enrico was trembling from happiness as he grabbed his backpack.

 _I'm going to become the strongest! INVINCIBLE!_ He did't care about a petty survival game; what he did care about was Kazuki. He'd find her and coerce her into working with him. And if that didn't work, he just had to point the pistol at her head and say 'are you sure about that'?

Thinking about how powerful he would become, Enrico made his way into the forest.


	7. Chapter 5 - Trigger

_**IMPORTANT NOTICE - This chapter is linked to a map I drew. You can find it at [link]: imgur,com**_ ** _/_ _4KirxD7_**

 _In order for the **link** to work,_ _remove_ **,** _after imgur and add_ **.**

Keep in mind that the map shows the situation and location of people at the start of the chapter. This means that while the map in chapter 4 reflects how it starts out, the map in chapter 5 reflects how chapter 4 ends.

Also, I took some time to correct the grammatical mistakes in the other chapters and add/change some things to make the chapters more enjoyable/better; that's why it took longer for me to upload. I also worked on character backgrounds, in case you're interested, check out chapter X! (But remember that I will give that information bit by bit in the main story!)

* * *

Usain Bolt, in the year 2009, set the worldwide record for the 100-meter sprint. He managed to reach 44.7 km/h, an astonishing speed for a human being. While it may be useful to run that fast in a battle at close quarters, doing so in a long distance would definitely result in exhaustion.

Yuuji's body had clearly forgotten what the limits of a human being were. He didn't know if it was caused by that regenerative capsule, but he felt like he could run at a car's speed. However, recognizing that he would be exhausted before reaching his destination if he did so, he moderated his speed to 46 km/h.

He had already run 12 kilometers... actually, 13. He traveled at 13 meters per second, 5 meters per step. The terrain was moving horrifically quickly under his feet, and the landscape had changed from plains to sands before he'd known it. Trying to avoid having his feet sink into the sand, Yuuji purposefully aims for the spots where the sands are solid, but it makes little difference; it almost seems like he's running on water, relying on his sheer speed.

 _Just wait for me... I'm coming! I won't let you get hurt no matter what!_ Yuuji found his own thoughts ridiculous, but there he was, running at speeds lying beyond human limits.

Just as he was taught, he wouldn't cry for himself. Instead, he would shed sweat to get what he wanted. Just as he was taught, he was almost too late to save anything most of the time. But he decided a sub-clause to his second policy.

He wouldn't be late anymore. He would **protect** **Kazuki no matter what.**

* * *

 _I'm cloooooseeee!_ Enrico Biaggi was already basking in his own glory. He didn't need to think he had essentially won, but he knew he was a single step from winning. Even if something came up, he'd manipulate the people involved and get out of a bad predicament.

He didn't find moving in the jungle convenient, sure, but he was getting used to it. The terrain was uneven in many places, but he kept running despite wearing business shoes. He knew very well that Kazuki was like a magnet, and she would soon attract everyone. He needed to establish a link with her, and become the one taking charge of her custody (aka make her a prisoner). He just had to get his first sentence out and he'd manage to make anyone into his toy...

The terminal on Enrico's wrist showed three dots, one of which was far off into the distance. The other two, however, were nearly completely overlapped.

"Damn... does this thing have no ZOOM button?" Enrico mumbled to himself; he was never good with technology, so he got easily frustrated whenever something couldn't instantaneously do what he wanted.

He kept walking through the forest when he heard a strange sound come from above. Making sure not to make any noise, he slowly turned his chin up and laid his eyes on her. She had white hair and purple irises, and she was no tree.

* * *

Inside the tropical forest, a plant's branch slightly moved, adjusting itself to the movements of a creature beneath it. The environment prepared for Project X was extremely harsh, but it was still just a jungle; anyone with some experience would be capable of walking through it.

Gao Zi Shu had utterly failed to do so. As a NEET, in his life, there were very few times he actually went out into the world. Yes, it was a pain in the ass to walk from his house to the convenience store to buy groceries - that's why he did it once a week, carrying heavy bags of instant noodles and other things to eat that were completely brain dead to cook.

He squirmed and let his body settle on a flat rock. _The hell, this place is so annoying._ He never liked being in the outside world, so he had no idea how to handle himself if something like this were to happen. He was annoyed to no end, but he was also quite angry.

 _Why the F*CK would I be selected?_ Zi Shu had never once killed someone. Of course, he made several normies go to jail for their crime of being normies, but he hadn't killed any of them - directly, that is. After thinking about it a bit, he realized it was not due to his 'actual killings' as much as it was due to his potential. Were he to hack the Chinese train lines, he could kill thousands within minutes.

Just as Zi Shu was about to look at the equipment stowed in his backpack, loud stepping sounds echoed inside his eardrums. He pressed his body to the ground, making sure he was hidden behind the vegetation and perked his ears up. When the noise was far away, Zi Shu let his body relax.

At that moment, another sound came from nearby; gunshots. Zi Shu dove to the ground, thinking it may be targeted at him, and then begun swearing repeatedly; "Those bastards, they think they can do what they want without asking me, they should burn, I'm going to make them suffer, I'm going to..."

Once his mind had regained some calm, he took his backpack off and looked inside.

A drone. Zi Shu had a remote-controlled drone as a starting item. And despite not knowing how to use it, he couldn't have been happier.

"Time to kill some f*cking normies."

* * *

Approximately ten kilometers from Zi Shu, a dark silhouette was clumsily running deeper into the jungle. It was sluggish, as its clothes were soaked in water and it was hard to run, but it didn't hesitate to push itself forward.

Alejandro was only a couple of meters away from Kazami Kazuki. He could already feel the taste of victory, but he was not so stupid as to relax now. He had come a long way from the island he started at, and was not about to drop his guard to open himself up for possible attacks.

At last, Alejandro reached the tree where Kazuki had been sitting for the last twenty minutes. Noticing the fact his position dot and hers had overlapped, he looked upwards and saw a hint of white amongst the branches of the tree.

"... Haha." Alejandro cackled, feeling like everything was just going according to plan. He made its way around the tree, but found someone other than Kazami Kazuki before his very eyes; a thin, brown-haired man with brown eyes. In his hand, a pistol. Alejandro instantaneously understood what was happening and, right there and then, took out the double-barreled shotgun from his backpack. He pointed it at the man's head and looked into his eyes.

"Move." Despite the curtness of his words, or just because of it, the tension skyrocketed in a matter of seconds. Enrico and Alejandro, who both had Kazuki as their objective, stared at each other.

"Okay, got it." Enrico was distressed to say the least when a shotgun was pointed at his head, but he reminded himself that the situation could worsen if he didn't obey. He lowered his gun and, while looking at Alejandro, took a couple of steps back.

Alejandro, however, did not know what type of man Enrico was and wanted to make sure he couldn't be attacked. "Give me your gun unless you want to die right here and now." Alejandro pointed his animosity at Enrico, trying to give him an extra reason to comply. However, before he could even finish his sentence, Enrico had stretched out his hand with the gun's muzzle pointing downwards. Alejandro took the gun out of his hand and shoved it into his back pocket.

"Now stay there." Once Alejandro disarmed Enrico, he turned his attention to Kazuki, who remained motionless.

"Hey Miss Kazami! What a pleasure it is to make your acquaintance! I hate waiting on women, so get your ass down here unless you want to die." Alejandro delivered his sentences in a curt manner, just as he always had. He hated pleasantries, but he added some of them just because it was Yuuji's sister he was talking to.

"I do not have the guarantee that I won't die when I climb down, or am I wrong?" Kazuki replied, keeping a calm expression. Alejandro giggled hearing her reply; it was out of the ordinary to receive such a reply while pointing a gun.

"I guarantee your safety; my aim is a one on one fight with your brother. I don't care about anything other than fighting him to the death." Hearing Alejandro's affirmation, Kazuki felt slightly distressed about his motives, but she didn't give it away. She didn't know that man, but she could already predict he would hate idle chatter, so she decided to bring forth her proposition.

"My brother is making his way here as we speak. Why don't you take a seat behind the tree and wait patiently? That way you can't be shot by him, and you could have your one on one fight." Alejandro considered Kazuki's proposition, and thought about it over for three minutes, his face pensive.

"Well, I could do that. That sounds like a good idea." He decided to settle on the idea. He lowered his gun from Kazuki, and told her, "Don't think about running away. I'm not an idiot." Kazuki silently nodded, and her eyes dropped down to her terminal.

But before she could see what was on it, a gunshot took her hearing away. Alejandro dropped to the ground, his head nearly split in half by the bullet shot from a 2-kilometer distance.

The game had just begun.

* * *

A shot from 500 meters is child's play. A shot from 1 kilometer requires quite a decent level of skill... but a shot from 2 kilometers requires skill, precision and, most of all, luck. You can't exactly predict how the bullet will be redirected by the winds unless you can 'see its color'. That's exactly what Kazami Yuuji had done.

While he was running towards Kazuki, he realized that he wouldn't be the first to get there. The people who had no idea what to do would definitely make their way towards Kazuki, trying to understand what was happening. Hence, once he got in a 3-kilometer range, he detached the rifle's scope and started searching for Kazuki as he ran. The vision was extremely shaky and he struggled to keep the same pace, but he somehow made do. When he entered the 2-kilometer range, he noticed a man in front of the tree Kazuki had climbed up on. And that man was holding a shotgun.

Yuuji's eyes hurriedly moved to Kazuki, whom he confirmed wasn't hurt. _Thank god._ Once he confirmed her condition, he didn't even need to think. He got down to the ground, reattached the scope and shot. He pulled the trigger with an ease he would've never expected to experience.

After shooting the man, Yuuji felt a strange sense of nothingness. He had expected a backlash, anything that would tell him of his sin once more, but he felt nothing of the sort. He was repulsed by his own reaction, but something eluded him; the reason he was able to pull the trigger so easily was Kazuki. Just like how he did it for Asako, he once managed to shoot without feeling his stomach turn inside out; it was happening again. Yuuji quickly got up and started running towards Kazuki once again.

 _I'm not going to lose you anymore, Kazuki._

* * *

 ** _DEATH COUNT IN PROJECT X: 2_**


	8. Chapter 6 - Let us Collide

**Starting Notes:**

1\. This week, I unfortunately don't have a map for you guys (my printer broke /). I'll add it as soon as I can.

2\. I'm losing my motivation to keep posting chapters for this fanfic. If you'd like to see me keep writing it, please let me know via review if you like the story. I'm working on multiple things at a time, and since my other project (an original work) seems to give me far more satisfaction, I'd like to know if it's worth it to keep writing this fanfic.

Ok, boring stuff out of the way, let's get right to it!

* * *

Human life is a concept that people don't understand easily; at times, you'll find yourself wondering just what it really is. Initially, you'll probably orient yourself on an answer like 'thou shall not kill', but things change when circumstances change. A drunken fit of your father can modify your behaviour completely, throwing the rest of your life in utter chaos.

Yuuji was one of such cases. While he understood the heaviness brought by killing, and knew it was an action he shouldn't ever have to take, he did so for the sake of several people over the course of his life. First his mother, who was just being raped by his father; then it was Asako, whom saved him. And now, it was Kazuki.

Romantic feelings aren't something easy to understand; their true nature is much more perverse than everyone would like to think it is. At times subtle, while evident at others, they always end up having an impact on the actions you take.

"Fuck..." Yuuji thought he had done it; he thought he no longer would backlash from killing. But despite not feeling his stomach turn inside out, he still felt a heavy burden come crashing down on him a couple of seconds after. He could barely keep running, and pushed on only using his sheer will.

"I need to get there..." Out of breath and close to fainting, Yuuji kept running, fighting the urge to throw up.

* * *

Falling to your knees and begging for your life at a girl no older than sixteen is truly deplorable - but Enrico would've done anything he possibly could in order to keep his life.

The sudden shot had taken all air from his lungs, together with his ability to breathe for a couple of seconds. Once he understood that the body of the man before him was dead, he glanced at his terminal and started begging Kazuki.

"I'm so sowwyyy... Phleashe let me goh... I wash fohrced by someone... I dohn't want any of thish..." While Enrico knew that Kazuki was highly likely to recognize he was lying, he did so regardless. As long as he got out, he would have a second chance at some point, but were he to die right there and then, there would be no second chances.

"..." Kazuki considered his proposition. While she knew it was dangerous to leave a man in this game alive, she knew that she could not reach the gun unless she did something overly reckless. She also knew that Yuuji would not be able to handle the sin of killing.

"Go. And don't show your face around again." Trying to fake as if she had been fooled, Kazuki gave Enrico the option to run. Within two seconds, the man had gotten away from the scene, but not before grabbing Alejandro's weapons and his own.

 _So, in his opinion, he no longer needs to hide his animosity for me. He must be really confident._ Kazuki simply decided to keep waiting while Yuuji was running there. She wanted to do something more, but she didn't have the ability to do so. Somewhere deep inside her heart, she felt anger at herself for the second time in her life.

* * *

Dexpire clearly hearing the sound of a gunshot in the distance, Vadim didn't flinch - in actuality, he _couldn't_ flinch. Were he to flinch, his head would've been chopped off by the demon that resembled a human being.

Barely managing to react on time, he ducked, avoiding the sword's path. Seeing an opening, he threw a knife at the lump of flesh and jumped back, dodging another strike.

"CooOOoMmEEEee hHEEeERrReeE..." If you heard that voice in first person, you wouldn't be able to imagine it belonging to a human being.

Exchanging blows on uneven footing is extremely hard; Vadim Mikhailov knew it far too well. He'd tried extremely hard to switch places with his opponent, but every time he came close to the lump of metal you'd call a sword, he instinctively either jumped back or dodged.

While Vadim is standing in the middle of a wet mud field, his opponent is standing beyond it, her feet firmly planted on grass.

"SnNnAAaCkK TTIiimMEeE..." _Can you even call those words?_

The woman before Vadim, Julia Fuentes, had attacked him the moment she saw him. Vadim tried to reason with the woman, but it was wasted breath, and wasting breath in a fight means death.

 _Fuck... why am I here?_ The last thing Vadim remembers is partying with the only person he could call a friend at his house. They drank so much they should end in a hospital, yet had the guts to keep at it. His mind wasn't exactly sure of what happened after, but he knew he somehow ended up here.

 _Just when I had finally managed to retire..._ Vadim was taken in by an organization at young age in order to participate in a "training camp". This training camp consisted of daily physical abuses and murders, and was named 'The Homecoming'. Its purpose was not only to increase the manpower of the Russian mafia, but also to deepen the roots of their influence by threatening important men who could oppose it and were protected carefully.

After twenty years of service (starting for 8 to 28), Vadim had finally managed to free himself from the shackles of the Russian mafia and got his family, consisting of his wife and daughter, into a safe country. He returned to make one last toast to his previous life before waving it goodbye forever.

Instead, he was thrown into a cruel assassination game.

Vadim was never against killing, but he had never particularly liked it either. Just because he was one of the ten to survive amongst thousands of people trained in 'The Homecoming' didn't mean he was apathetic to those he killed. His heart was hardened by his experiences, yes, but he always remembered the woman he fell in love with.

 _What if they have someone like that too...?_ That had always been Vadim's final thought before throwing his knives at the men's hearts. He hated his job, but he had to keep working, otherwise his family wasn't safe.

He knew far too well he would regret killing Julia as he exchanged blows with her, but he simply couldn't feel sorry for the thing; it was full of muscles, to the point of being disgusting. If a name other than Julia Fuentes were to be given to it, it would surely be 'monster'.

Julia mindlessly swung her arm, which held a sword, at Vadim's torso. Seeing the horizontal trajectory of the blade, Vadim leaped and landed on the sword; he had finally taken his opponent's weapon away.

With the window of time he had, Vadim threw the second knife at Julia's left eye, which was pierced in less than a second.

"UAAAUAHHAUUUUAA!" Crying out in pain, Julia stumbled back as she held her hand over her eye. She tried her best not to move it, but it was obvious she couldn't, so the blade kept cutting into the eye.

"Sorry... nothing personal." Vadim took the last knife and buried it in Julia's chest. Before long, her heart stopped beating.

Vadim extracted the knives he used against the woman from her body as quickly as possible, then surveyed the area. He didn't have single idea of what he should do, but he knew there were two people who had signaled their location. Considering the fact they had the same surname, Vadim thought he should find them. He had barely understood anything about the survival game, but he knew there could only be one winner according to the announcers, so he thought they wouldn't be interested in drawing anyone's animosity.

 _Just wait for me, Dominika... I'm going to come back to you!_ Vadim vowed he would return to his beloved wife as he picked up the pace.

* * *

While a person stops breathing when their heart is pierced, it could only do so much to Julia Fuentes.

She was an expert in regeneration research, but, when she found out no one would partake in her experiments, she decided to carry them out on herself.

She periodically self-administered drugs she developed. She longed for the perfect human, and didn't understand why those idiots in Brazil didn't share her sentiment.

After enough drugs, she begun experiencing backlash; her mind was no longer hers, and she could barely stay conscious at all, but she thought she had done it.

 _I have finally completed the perfect human._ Her thoughts were borderline incomprehensible, since she was no longer human, but she thought she had become perfect.

No one really knows how she disappeared off the face of Earth - but people kept asking themselves, "I wonder what she managed to achieve?"

And while that question can't be answered with a simple answer, the body that should still belong to Julia Fuentes regenerated perfectly.

* * *

It's impressive how technology can emulate the real thing when it advances enough. Robots can do tasks that humans use to do, and artificial intelligence can think better than a true human can.

The artificial forest made for Project X is no exception; it looked so realistic, only an expert eye could discern its true nature. Of course, if you got a taste of the fruits that grew on the trees, you'd probably get the chance to do so just before dying.

The landscape changes rapidly if you run fast enough, making it hard to gain a real foothold. Yuuji was stumbling half of the time he was running, but he couldn't slow down.

He had to find her, he had to see her. _Come on! Let me move!_ He freed his feet from a tree's roots and squeezed every last drop of his strength out of his muscles.

 _Hurry!_ Yuuji wouldn't know, but he was running at nearly 80km/h. His mind was a mess, and the only thing he thought of was seeing Kazuki.

When he sighted her, still standing on the tree, he tried slowing down. That said, he couldn't slow down as much as he wanted; he ended up meeting the tree face first. The impact was so strong, his bones rattled and he felt his sense of gravity spin.

"...I would've liked to make a sarcastic comment, but seeing how messed up you are instantly took it away from me. Are you okay?" There she was, sitting on the tree, and the first thing she said was exactly what Yuuji imagined it would be.

"..." Somewhere inside him, the dam burst. Yuuji fought back the tears desperately, but he couldn't hold them in completely. "Kazuki... you're safe, Kazuki..." The picture of Asako lying on her deathbed had made its way through his mind far too many times, and seeing Kazuki again had triggered his built-up anxiety to release.

"... You're so foolish." Kazuki slowly made her way down the tree, trying her best not to fall, and soon wrapped her arms around Yuuji.

"..." Kazuki wanted to speak; she wanted to say something, but she couldn't get the words out of her mouth. Seeing her brother so dependent on her reminded her of those days they were far more innocent, yet stained nonetheless.

Kazuki had to save him. She had to, no matter what, and she wasn't dense when it came to feelings. Not only that, but she could only be straightforward, so there was really only one way to do things.

"...Yuuji... thank you, Yuuji..." she whispered in his ear. He wrapped his arms around her, trying to get as close as he possibly could, checking if she was still warm; still alive.

"...Kah...zhu...key..." He knew he looked deplorable, and felt anger for being unable to waltz in and tell her "I'm here" coolly, but it didn't matter if she was alive. If she was alive, he could go through any pain; he could humiliate himself as much as it was needed.

There, at a tree's foot, were two people broken by the world; the first, by a chain of unfortunate circumstances, the second, by frustration for being unable to save the first. To them, there was little need for words.

"Kazuki... I need you to do something for me." Yuuji turned his eyes up to the white-haired girl, renewing his decision.

"I need you to - never leave me again."

 _'A kiss is no more than a moment of contact between two mucus membranes.'_

 _Is it, though?_ Yuuji wrapped his arms around Kazuki to the point their warmth melted one into the other. Kazuki looked into his eyes, her purple irises enchanting him to the point of madness.

...Yuuji."

"... I love you,

...Kazuki."

No more words were needed. Kazuki fixed her eyes to Yuuji's, which looked softer than they ever had. They both approached each other, slightly unsure of what to do, and their lips met halfway.

A soundless explosion, a neon light; the perfect balance between thrill and warmth. A heartbeat infinitely loud, yet incredibly soothing. An asteroid could've collided with Earth, wiping out the entirety human civilization, and the two wouldn't have cared.

They knew it, right there and then.

All they ever needed was each other.


End file.
